Local-Motion

It's great that New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is coming up with creative marketing campaigns to attract more tourists - particular foreign tourists - to visit New York City. But can visitors even get here? At Kennedy Airport, the flight delays have been increasing over the years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Average departure and arrival delays at the airport are more than an hour long, according to the bureau. After sitting on the plane an extra hour to just get to New York, the mayor's feel good marketing campaign for tourists better be really good.

A big complaint of Long Island Rail Road commuters is that railroad officials don't communicate service issues with them in a "timely" fashion. Railroad officials say that isn't the case. But if the proof is in the pudding -- or in the perception -- then the communications problem between the railroad and its riders is well illustrated by the latest issue of the LIRR newsletter "Keeping Track." That would be the August 2007 issue of "Keeping Track." The issue was posted on-line on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority website -- http://www.mta.info/ -- on Wednesday, Aug. 29. The issue was distributed in hard-copy format on LIRR trains on Thursday, Aug. 30. Right, with little more than one day left in August. The lead item in the August issue of "Keeping Track" is the announcement of a new credit card-debit card program designed to make it easier for customers to purchase tickets. The program began Aug. 15 -- more than two weeks before distribution of the newsletter. "Starting August 15," the item reads, "LIRR ticket agents began . . . " Which begs the question: Why didn't officials get this into the July newsletter -- to make riders aware of a program meant to benefit them before it went into effect, not after? Railroad officials will tell you one reason is that details surrounding the implementation of the program may not have been finalized in time for the previous newsletter. Fair enough. Also fair is that the railroad did announce the program -- and post a press release regarding the program -- the day it began, Aug. 15. They also argue the newsletter is not scheduled like a newstand magazine. That is, the August issue does not come out in late July or at the beginning of August. It comes out when it comes out, in this case with two days left in the month. Last week, new LIRR president Helena Williams was forced to hold a news conference to defend the railroad on the issue of customer service after a New York State Department of Transportation bridge-installation project caused the railroad to cancel all weekend service between Mineola and Hicksville. Williams said the railroad had issued sufficient warning to its customers about the service disruptions. Customers said the warning wasn't sufficient enough. Which forced Williams into a position of having to do damage control. That was the case again on Monday, when the railroad was forced to defend itself after Amtrak work crews found a problem with tracks in one of the four East River Tunnels the LIRR uses to access Penn Station -- and the LIRR was forced to delay, re-route or terminate a total of 11 morning rush-hour trains bound for Manhattan. The service disruption wasn't the fault of the LIRR. In fact, it reinforced the old argument that Amtrak should relinquish ownership of the tunnels to the LIRR. But instead of seizing the moment, providing riders with timely information about service problems and using the issue to focus attention on how Amtrak's shortcomings continue to hurt operation of the LIRR, railroad officials thoroughly bungled the chance. Having learned about the tunnel track problem at 4:30 a.m., LIRR officials didn't make riders aware of it until a "Service Alert" was issued at 7 a.m. -- much too late for commuters on eight of the 11 trains. Riders said they should have been told sooner. They're right. The August issue of "Keeping Track" features an item about train service to the U.S. Open Tennis Championships, which started last week and end Sept. 9, and a reminder about special "getaway trains" that will run at the start of Labor Day Weekend -- Friday, Aug. 31. Like we said, perception goes a long way towards proof. Especially, when it comes to the perception of disgruntled commuters regarding communications with the LIRR. The sad truth is that such faux pas continue to make the railroad look bad. Time for railroad officials to listen. And learn.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg has pledged that his proposed congestion pricing plan will decrease traffic by at least six percent in New York City. The federal government has pledged to kick in $354 million to get the program off the ground, if the city council and the state legislature approve the plan by March. A commission has been formed to figure out how best to implement the plan which, as proposed, would charge motorists between $8 and $21 per day to travel into Manhattan below 86th Street. But as officials work out the details here's a look at how congestion pricing has worked in London, the first major city to use the plan. Congestion pricing was introduced in London in February 2003. By most accounts, the program has been a success. Studies claim a reduction of 20,000 vehicles per day traveling into the city -- roughly a 10-percent decrease in automobile traffic -- and an increase in the average speed of traffic moving around the city. Peak-period congestion delays have declined about 30 percent. Bus ridership increased 14 percent, while subway ridership increased about 1 percent. A majority of businesses in London claim the plan has had no effect on business. Studies found that delivery times, in some cases, have been cut in half. Pedestrians and cyclists have claimed a positive response to the program. Congestion pricing has produced significant revenues. But here's what you don't know about congestion pricing in London: * The initial fee of 5 British pounds -- about $10 -- to enter the city between 7 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. was increased to 8 British pounds -- almost $16 -- in July 2005, a significant increase that was needed to offset costs; * About half of the revenue generated by the plan -- about $125.5 million of the estimated $259 million revenue for 2004-2005, the year the study was based on -- went toward operating the program, leading some critics to argue it is not as cost-effective as first claimed; * Outlying neighborhoods have claimed significant increases in traffic, with as much as a 10 percent increase in vehicle volume on peripheral roads; * A high rate of so-called "false positives," motorists being wrongly ticketed for treks into the city they did not make, were recorded during the first months of operation, as devices used to read license plate numbers misinterpreted characters or registration data. The false positive rates have decreased as the system has been perfected, but still are cause for concern transportation studies found; * Some smaller businesses claim they have been negatively impacted by the restrictions, first and foremost among them "bulk good retailers" who rely on customers who drive private cars. A significant portion of annual revenues generated by congestion pricing in London come from penalties, according to officials. About $30 million is generated by penalties, based on a system that charges drivers roughly a $160 fine if they fail to pay the toll fee. That fine is reduced to roughly $80 if it is paid within two weeks, but is increased to approximately $240 if it is not paid within one month. The system requires drivers to pay their toll within 24 hours of making their trip into London. Motorists can pay on-line or by cellphone or at specially designated "payment" machines. Weekly, monthly and annual toll passes are available at a discount. Motorcyclists and residents who live within the restricted zones are eligible for discounts of up to 90 percent, as are handicapped and disabled drivers. It remains unclear what impact -- positive or negative -- congestion pricing will have on New Yorkers. It does figure, though, to have the greatest impact on suburban drivers -- particularly Long Islanders and residents of Westchester -- who travel into midtown Manhattan, especially since their access to mass transit into the city may be limited. Other cities around the world are working on their own congestion pricing plans, among them: Trondheim, Oslo and Bergen in Norway; Singapore; Edinburgh, Scotland; and, Cardiff, Wales. Stockholm, Barcelona and Milan have all shown interest in establishing congestion pricing plans, as has Sao Paulo, Brazil. But there is very limited information available about those proposed plans at this time.

An inspection by Amtrak crews Sunday night found that emergency track repairs were needed in one of the four East River Tunnels used by the Long Island Rail Road to access Penn Station. That caused delays, diversions and even the termination of 11 trains on Monday. This is not the fault of the LIRR. And the LIRR is not at fault because the construction of a railroad bridge needed to eliminate a dangerous grade-level crossing at Roslyn Road caused a major service disruption on the mainline Saturday and Sunday. The New York State Department of Transportation needed a 48-hour window to install the bridge, part of a $24.3-million safety improvement project, and that caused the suspension of all weekend train service between Mineola and Hicksville. These things are necessary. They happen. It's a fact of life. What is the fault of the railroad, however, is its lack of communication with the riders it is supposed to be serving. And apparent over the course of the past 72 hours is that railroad officials seem willing to treat commuters as an afterthought, instead of like valued customers. This should be Business 101. Instead, being a public authority with a product consumers have little choice but to use, the reaction of the LIRR often seems to be this: We tried. If that's not good enough, too bad. Which is a sad commentary on how the LIRR and its parent entity, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, conduct business. As if they're not answerable to the public they are supposed to serve. The public they're mandated to serve. The public who pays their bills. At issue here is whether or not the MTA and LIRR are keeping commuters informed. They have a multimillion dollar website -- http://www.mta.info/ -- designed to provide this information. They urge commuters to consult the site for service alerts designed to inform riders about disruptions in service. On Monday the LIRR issued its "Service Alert" about the problems with the East River Tunnels at 7 a.m. But four of the trains affected by the track problem -- the 5:56 a.m. from Babylon, the 6:29 a.m. from Oyster Bay, the 6:57 a.m. from Freeport and the 6:58 a.m. from Hempstead -- departed their stations prior to the alert being issued. Another four -- the 7:12 a.m. from Hempstead, the 7:29 a.m. from Freeport, the 7:36 a.m. from West Hempstead and the 7:37 a.m. from Babylon -- required riders to leave their homes for the station either before or close to 7 a.m. Still, in the midst of it all, the riders were the last to know. The last to know that some of their trains were being diverted to Hunterspoint Avenue or Flatbush Avenue, the last to know that those diversions meant they would be forced onto subway trains to complete their morning trips into Manhattan. It meant they were the last to know some of their Monday-morning trains would be "terminating," as the LIRR called it, at Jamaica Station. These are the same complaints riders had Saturday and Sunday during the service disruptions caused by the project at Roslyn Road. Over the weekend new LIRR president Helena Williams defended the railroad, citing e-mail alerts to customers, on-board announcements, posters placed in stations and even pamphlets dropped on train seats as proof that officials had kept customers informed. But the fact is the MTA and LIRR did not issue a service alert on the website in a timely fashion. That meant some riders who might have gotten word never did. This is unacceptable. And someone in Albany -- hint, Gov. Eliot Spitzer -- needs to make it clear this is a situation that needs to get fixed. Soon. Word is that the MTA is planning to raise fares within the next year. It needs more money to run the public transit system, officials say. But keeping the public informed has nothing to do with money. It has to do with priorities. And professionalism. Oh, and consideration for the commuting public. Right now, the MTA and LIRR continue to show poor judgement when it comes to all of the above. Right now, they're their own worst enemies. Commuters have every right to be disgruntled. And annoyed. Chances are if riders could take their business elsewhere, they would. Sadly, they can't. But that doesn't mean the railroad shouldn't treat these hard-working customers with respect. They should. Right now, they're not.

It has been on the drawing board for more than 40 years. But, it was never built. The bridge to Connecticut. The bridge across the Long Island Sound. Talk was it was too expensive. Talk was it wouldn't do anything to reduce traffic congestion on the Long Island Expressway. Talk was it was simply not feasible. But, honestly, now the time has come for someone, somewhere -- hint, hint: the governor's office, the office of the New York State Department of Transportation -- to start talking about it again. And to find a way to build it. Build it because there is only one way off Long Island if you're not in a boat or an airplane. That's through the bottleneck of New York City. Which was just fine and dandy when Long Island was farmland and suburbia, a small undeveloped bedroom community. Now, with more than 2.8 million people living in Nassau and Suffolk it is simply unacceptable and -- in the face of terrorist threats or storms that could mandate a mass evacuation -- downright dangerous. In recent years, "On the Road" has suggested some alternatives to be considered by state officials. One was a Cross-Sound Tunnel, which world-leading tunnel-building experts told Newsday was more than possible -- at a reasonable, realistic price. The idea was frowned upon by state officials. Now, news out of Denmark should have state officials rethinking a Cross-Sound Bridge. The time has come. The latest bridge on the planning boards in Denmark is a 12-mile structure that would span the Fehmarn Strait between Denmark and Germany. The price-tag? About $6.5 billion. It would have four lanes, two rail tracks and create unprecendented access for travelers. The Danes have already built the Great Belt Bridge, which links eastern and western Denmark. They've built the Oresund Bridge, which spans the strait between Denmark and Sweden. There is talk of another bridge that would link Copenhagen to Aarhus, cutting the railroad journey between the country's two largest cities from three hours to 30 minutes. The difference between the Danes and politicians here in the U.S. -- in New York -- is that the Danes aren't just talking. They're building. And, they're solving real transportation issues. The fact is that a bridge across the Long Island Sound would save Long Islanders at least 100 miles -- and, more often, even more -- of driving on trips up the East Coast. It also would reduce truck trips through New York City to Long Island. Which, of course, would reduce freight costs -- and reduce congestion. A bridge across the Sound could, in theory, provide rail access. It also could foster tourism, both on Long Island and to Northeast states -- Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine. It could open doors to new revenues generated by tolls, which certainly would be cheaper than a ferry trek that comes with a pricetag of $60 or more for the round-trip. Yes, there is a question of an access point to build a bridge. But with some creative and forward thinking that could be resolved. We can't wait another 40 years or more for someone to implement a vision here. We've already waited too long. It's time for state officials to step up to the plate and find a solution. The price-tag may sound too hefty. But not building a route across the Long Island Sound will cost us even more.

It was a violent thunderstorm, one that even spawned a rare Brooklyn cyclone. But the fact remains that all that was needed to paralyze the mass transit systems serving New York City and Long Island on Wednesday was about three inches of rain. Which is most frightening. And inexcusable. It rained and virtually every line of the Long Island Rail Road suffered mind-numbing delays or was knocked out of commission. Again. It rained and virtually every subway line in New York City was knocked out of commission -- or suffered mind-numbing delays. Again. We understand that when it rains, it pours. But this is ridiculous. The severe storm that hit our area Wednesday dropped 2.5 inches of rain on Central Park -- and about 3.5 inches of rain on Kennedy Airport -- between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m., according to the National Weather Service. A downpour, no doubt. But hardly a hurricane. Yet for the third time in seven months the New York City Transit subway system was knocked for a loop. And the Long Island Rail Road was knocked for a loop, too. Which, railroad riders will tell you, seems to be the case every time it rains on Long Island. Officials from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs the railroad and the subway system, will tell you the subway's drainage system can handle a maximum of about 1.5 inches of rain per hour. Estimates were not immediately available for the LIRR. But common sense will tell you that two of the largest mass transit systems in the world -- systems that move millions of riders each day -- should not be vulnerable to a rainstorm. Not in our 21st Century world. Not in a place that likes to consider itself the global center of the modern world. In the wake of Wednesday's storm, Gov. Eliot Spitzer ordered MTA engineers to figure out what improvements were necessary to prevent future subway flooding. Perhaps he should have ordered them to do the same for the LIRR. Because something needs to be done. Because drainage needs to be improved. Dramatically. There's no reason why anything short of a major hurricane should impact our railroad and subway systems. Certainly, there's no reason why -- in 2007 -- three inches of rain should bring New York City and Long Island to their knees. That's what happened Wednesday. It rained. And the world as we know it stopped dead in its tracks. Literally. That's unforgivable. The MTA needs to figure out how to get itself out of the deep end of the pool before another rainstorm washes out the tracks once again.

It seems like old news, but it's worth pointing out just how bad the situation is. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) said Monday that June was one of the worst months for flight delays at Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark airports. According to Schumer, LaGuardia ranked 23, Newark 29 and Kennedy 30, in terms of the worst major airport departure delays in June. The June arrival statistics for the three airports were even more grim, with nearly 50 percent of arrivals at the three airports arriving late, according to the senator. Schumer's office said LaGuardia was ranked 30th, Kennedy 31st and Newark 32nd. Keep in mind that there are only 32 major airports across the county.

It's been said it takes a tragedy to spur change. As we're finding out this week, that's sad but true. It took the attack on the World Trade Center for the U.S. to decide there was terrorism in the world that needed to be dealt with. It took the death of a teen for the Long Island Rail Road to admit there was a safety issue with platform gaps that needed to be addressed. And it has taken a devastating bridge collapse in Minnesota for us to say maybe it's time to take a hard look at the state of our infrastructure. For years, hundreds of bridges around the country -- and scores in New York state -- have been categorized as "structurally deficient" under guidelines catalogued by the Federal Highway Administration. The reaction of politicians has mostly been to turn a blind eye to the problem. Instead Washington -- and, to a lesser degree, the state government -- earmarks all sorts of money to a never-ending list of pork-barrell projects, wasting hard-earned taxes on shameless spending while little gets fixed. Until, that is, planes slam into the Twin Towers. Or a girl falls through an unsafe gap between a railroad platform and train. Until a bridge collapses into the Mississippi River. That is, until people get killed. Then everyone screams bloody murder and says something needs to be done. Here's a thought: Stop screaming. Just do it. Earmark funds for rehabilitation of our infrastructure -- something, you'll see, we've been calling for here since before the Interstate 35W Bridge crashed into the Mississippi on Wednesday. Earmark funds for building new infrastructure. Conduct more than cursory safety inspections. Come up with a real game plan that includes an honest list of "Must-Do" projects -- in order of importance, based on their condition -- and pull out all stops to find real money to actually do them. We've actually made great strides towards this end since our last major bridge collapse in New York state, the collapse of the Schoharie Creek Bridge on the New York State Thruway on April 5, 1987. A collapse, by the way, that in part was attributed by the National Transportation Safety Board and other investigating agencies to the fact that a "non-engineer" state employee overruled engineers seeking to shore-up the structure during a bridge rehabilitation project seven years earlier -- and deleted a proposed upgrade those engineers believed was needed to make the bridge safe. The "non-engineer" called the safety upgrade "unnecessary." But despite the fact that New York has greatly improved the condition of some of our bridges since the disaster at Schoharie Creek -- look at the rehabilitation of the Williamsburg Bridge as a prime example -- it is all too obvious we have not done enough. That we need to do more. And soon. The tragedy this week in Minnesota should be the punch in the face we need to remind us that some of our most important New York City landmarks -- landmarks we need to function daily as the metropolis we are -- are falling down. The Brooklyn Bridge, the Triborough Bridge, the Manhattan Bridge. The Queensboro Bridge. The time is now. Let's fix them, while we can.

Here's an idea: Maybe the Long Island Rail Road can hire moms to patrol its train platforms and remind passengers to be safe. You know: Walk, don't run! Don't play near the stairs! Watch where you're going! Be careful! Because while it's truly a good thing that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the LIRR have spent the last year, since the tragic death of Minnesota teen Natalie Smead, fixing dangerous gaps between its train cars and platforms, the new safety campaign announced this week by railroad officials borders on the ridiculous. It's one thing to remedy dangerous station conditions in the wake of the Smead tragedy, caused when the teen fell through a gap at Woodside Station last August, landed on the trackbed and was killed by another train as she attempted to climb back onto a platform. It's another thing entirely to design brochures, posters and announcements to remind riders they need to, as one bit of advice in the safety ads reads: "Look down when using stairs or escalators." Or, as another bit of advice warns: "Cross tracks only at grade crossings when gates are up and lights are not flashing." No kidding? The campaign is called "Be TrainSmart" and the motto of it is "Tune In To Safety." It's an initiative fostered by new LIRR President Helena Williams, who pledged to make safety on the commuter railroad her top priority. Railroad officials have an obligation to eliminate hazards at their stations and on their trains. That means redesigning platforms, repairing dangerous or deteriorating staircases, making certain mechanical elements in the system -- train car doors, escalators, etc. -- function normally and safely. It's their job, their duty, to protect passengers from all inherent dangers in the system. We should expect nothing less. But while it's one thing to remind unsuspecting passengers to "Watch the Gap!" spending $70,000 to advise passengers on how to walk down a flight of stairs is something else, entirely. One is a real-life safety issue. The other is simple common sense. Someone obviously thought this campaign was a bright idea. But, honestly, you've got to believe the money could have been better spent.